KGCI: Real Estate on Air - High-Value Networking to Build Powerful Real Estate Relationships

Episode Date: December 26, 2025

Summary:This episode is a tactical guide on how to network effectively to build powerful relationships and generate a consistent stream of referrals. The discussion moves beyond traditional, transactional networking to focus on building genuine connections and providing value to your network. It offers actionable advice on how to identify the right people to connect with, how to follow up, and how to stay top-of-mind with your most valuable contacts. This is a must-listen for agents who want to build a business based on relationships and referrals rather than on cold calls.

Right, a very, very warm welcome to everybody and in joining us into Elite Mastermind, a session where I bring on a guest and we talk about a specific topic that is going to help you in your business. Now, within EXP, I like to recognize our agents in four different levels. And these different levels is something of a recognition that each person likes to receive. Now, what are these four levels? Because I know most agents say, well, I only know of possibly one, maybe two. But level one is an agent that joins into EXB. You see, when you join into a real estate company, you like to get the recognition that you're part of something a lot bigger. You're not just isolated all by yourself.

So that getting that recognition of a welcoming on board is such an important factor, especially for myself, but all the agents that come into our team. The second level is when you actually do a deal. it is so important all that hard work that goes into doing a particular transaction to get that recognition really lifts you up it shows that people are recognizing the hard work that you're actually putting into your particular business because as we all know getting transactions it's not as easy as just waking up in the morning and then landing in front of you you've got to do a bit of hard work behind the scenes to actually get to that particular point so that's at a level two getting the recognition of doing a transaction. And that gets repeated for every transaction. Then we get to our level three

recognized agents. And these are our cap agents. These are agents that have done a number of deals and actually earned the status of being a cap agent. Now within the XB, what does it mean to be a cap agent? Well, to be a cap agent, you actually earn a hundred percent commission less that four percent transactional fee. So you net 96 percent commission. And that's really what each and every one of us want to get to in our particular business, we want to earn as most much commission as possible. But then we get on to level four. Level four is our highest level within EXP,

and that is the ICON agents. An icon agent is an agent that has done more than 35 transactions in a calendar year within the anniversary year, or earned more than $3 million in gross commission. Now, what do you get for being an icon? agent. Well, one, you're already a cap agent because you've done more that's required to earn that 100% commission less the 4% transactional fee, but you also get 150,000 RAND in EXBR shares that gets returned back to you. So in essence, you actually start to earn more than that

100% commission. So each level that we start to go through with our particular agents, I'm actually geared to help you and support you to get to those high level of productivity. So the elite masterminds, I pick our agents at our level three and four, and I have discussions with them to see what they're doing in their business that got them to such a high level in their particular business. Now, joining me today, I've got Colette. Colette, how are you doing today? Give us a bit of a background, how long you've been in real estate, how long you've been with

EXB, and any highlight that you'd love to share with us in this particular session. Hi Stuart and thanks for inviting me once again to this panel of discussion. So I am not, I haven't been with EXP for that long since I've only joined EXP towards the end of last year before we moved down to the garden route. But I have been in real estate now going into my third year. I was previously with another company and yeah, I just absolutely love the industry. I come from also interior design background. I've got another business that I've had for 17 years.

And I think coming from that as a business as well, you know, helped me in this real estate business because it's a lot to do with also with building relationships with people. And this is a people business. So but so far, yes, loving my journey with HXP and happy to be part of these kind of learning platforms as well. Fantastic. And if you actually reflect back. over your three years in real estate, you must have experienced some highlight, something that really stood out for you that either put a smile on your face or gave you a nice, warm and fuzzy

heart, anything that you can share with us, because it's the stories that actually gets us going in real estate. What could you share with us? That's really been a highlight. I think for me, it's usually, I'm a very emotional person. It comes where things become personal, where you touch people's lives and one of them although sad but also you know we've had a we've had a client that unfortunately while we were trying to sell this property he passed away which meant it went into a late state we then had to help the family but it was just the whole interaction with the family um taking this process and and i mean he was just really financially in such a predicament and had to sell his property and before we could actually sell it at a

where we could establish him in an older at home in a retirement village and my heart broke for this old man sitting there and you know you're discussing commission and your discussion discussing uh money um and it and it brings you back to you know what it's not really about the money here's this person sitting in front of you it's about what are you going to do to help him change his life and you know make it easier for him and then where those discussions come in and the money takes a back seat and if it comes about that relationship with that person and how we ultimately were ending up. You know, he unfortunately passed.

He had a stroke in the whole process and passed away, but we, you know, were ultimately able to help the family to alleviate the financial burden on the family as such as well. Absolutely. And I love the way you actually bring it. It's not about actual money because I found that a lot of new agents that are coming into the real estate space, the first thing that comes top of mind is how much money can I make?

But what we actually find, it's not actually the money. It's the relationships that we build. It's those emotional connections that we actually build. That is what's giving us a lot of purpose when we're going into this real estate space. And I'm glad that you touched on building up the relationships. Because for today's session, I really want to talk about these high value networking. This is when we're starting to build relationships with our clients, but more importantly, to start leveraging it for referrals.

You see, in our particular business, we spend a lot of business. a lot of our time building relationships with individuals. However, we don't build it to a point where they start giving us referral business. And as we know, most of the top producers, they actually, their business, a vast majority of their business is repeat and referral business. That is how you start to grow your portfolio. So collect for yourself, give us a scenario whereby you've actually started to build relationships with your clients and they've either given you repeat business or they've actually given you referrals that's helped you to grow your business give us a scenario that you've had in the past um yes steward i do agree if you

come wholeheartedly and you know people people do tend to deal with people in business that they've had some level of um in count with in terms of business often and i must be honest i'm personally in terms of dealing with friends i've always been very wary of dealing in business with friends because simply sometimes people do take advantage of people but if you if you have a very strong um strong character in the way that you do business and conduct yourself and being trust worthy and reliable you know those referrals do come so in my in my experience and in business and coming from my other business as well my interior design business I've dealt a lot with builders and developers and the likes of those kind of people so there there's been

quite a few referrals came from those people that I've, you know, that knew me from the other business that I've had and then I've told them once I've joined real estate, hey, this is what I'm doing now. Therefore, it is easier for them and they feel more comfortable to now reach out and say, okay, well, I have experienced collecting business. I know her business acriman. I know how she does business. And therefore, yes, a referral and run with it.

So you touched on something. There's a couple little points that I'm going to go through. the first one is building those relationships with friends and we all know when you start out in the journey of a friendship it starts in a way where you've actually got to build rapport with them for them to become a friend now at what stage do you regard one of your clients whether it's a builder developer buyer seller at what point do you regard them as a friend do you have any kind of point where you say you're now a friend Yeah, I'm actually quite lucky most of my clients have become my friends. I mean, you know, probably one of the craziest stories was my, I went to see my gynaecologist when I was pregnant with my child and he became a client and his wife is one of my best friends today. So, and that is just, yeah, but it just at that point, I think it's just you, you, when you really take an interest in somebody and you and you show that you care and it's not just about chasing the butt chasing. money at the end of the day. You really want to be adding the value in terms of the service that you provide. Then they also feel like a human. You know, you're not just to grab them off their

money. Yes, we're all working. We have to earn our money. And the value that we put in is ultimately what we want to earn in terms of an income. But I think once you value that person as well is when they feel, hey, and that's at the point where I mean, I'm just a very relationship-based person. and I love people. So therefore, I, most of my clients have become my friends. So now, you actually use these two words, which is actually, you know, creating you care for your particular clients or your friends, you've got those interests.

You've actually built a bond with them. And how do you maintain that relationship with them? So it actually leverages to a point where they start giving you referral business because you can have somebody as a friend and I've seen, spoken to a lot of agents, they've got friends, but ultimately their friend goes and buys a property with somebody else. And then they have those very uncomfortable conversations where why didn't you use me? What method are you using to make sure that you keep it strong so that one, you stay top of mind, but two, they actually give you referral business. Is there any little

secret source that you use to maintain those relationships? I think there are. There are a are still some people that are very scared to mix business and in business and pleasure business and friendships um and yes you are going to find some people that sometimes feel look i'm not going to cross that line and i because you're my friend i don't want to do the business with you but some something that i that i do a lot of is storytelling so i will tell my friends i mean we'll will be at a brie or get together or whatever and we all share a bit about our careers and our business and what what's happened and you know i'll hear something and i'll be like hey did you hear she's like i've just heard about this is this story that has happened or this kind of fraud that's happened or this

client has been been taken for money or whatever and i share the stories with my friends and ultimately um you know also give scenarios of something that can can go wrong and have gone wrong and i would say wow this you should rather have done that or are you storytelling in in um and i think by about doing that as well. You're building a rapport and friends ultimately they will be in another friend's circle for instance and hear about a referral, someone having a problem with another agent or not selling their property and they can say, hey, my friend does this and she seems to be quite resourceful because perhaps this is the problem that you're having and maybe she can use her network and their connection to sort out X, Y and Z problem that you have with the

council or be it whatever the situation is. So I use a lot of storytelling and examples. I'm quite a, I love to listen to stories and even other agents I've said before. I would love to actually write a book one day and it's the stories of a real estate agent because there's so many things. I mean, some of the scenarios and the things I've heard that can go wrong. And by storytelling, I also use that to build confidence and get my friends to say, hey, listen, I'd be a fool not to use her because she really does know what she's doing. I absolutely love that.

Become the storyteller because stories creates emotions and connections as we're going through it. And if I heard you correctly, your storytelling does not include something like this. Hey, by the way, I'm a real estate agent. Are you looking at buying or selling a property? Can I list your property? Do you know anybody that's looking to buy or sell properties? You're not pushing property down their throat to try and get listings or try and get them to buy a property. you're actually storytelling of what's experiences, of what's happening around.

Did I understand that correctly? Yes, absolutely. They all by now know that I sell property, but I do keep, yeah, the stories and the things that can go wrong and the, you know, maintenance issues, maintenance things that can happen and legal things, the fraud that's going around with money laundering and stuff like that. So all those kind of things are examples that I use in common. conversations and I mean I was at a being in Flint now as everybody knows we moved to the garden routes so it's a complete new market for me and I'm still trying to break into this

market but I've been sitting back now and sussing up what's happening here and at social events connecting with people and I'm listening to and also now I'm sharing stories oh yeah and I see this so this is you know how I would have handled it and I see these agents are doing X Y and Z and they're bringing up stories and saying you're my my neighbor down the road's property has been on the market for a year now and I think the price is so wrong and then I'm slowly coming in like oh maybe you should introduce me to your neighbor you know maybe I can help your neighbor maybe there's a real reason why it's not selling so but it is about that storytelling and in connecting with somebody I think on a on a on a human level um there's a lot of talk going on around the the AI aspect and people you know I mean I recently received a phone call from a from a real estate company. that was AI and I was like whoa this is crazy you know I believe people want to connect with people and people want to still talk to people and you can only do that by having that making a connection on some sort of level with another human being and that's emotions you know

absolutely emotional connection that's exactly what our business is all about it's not about the money it's about having those emotional connections that you can actually grow forward now you started to allude to one aspect of your particular business you've just reload to a new area. So I'm pretty sure that you're still using a Google Maps or something to try and navigate the roads and the streets. I mean, it's quite fresh in your mind. And that can actually feel quite overwhelming, coming into a brand new area to try and break in. And you mentioned that you're starting to go through to connect via events. Give us an idea of your steps that you're going to be taking, excuse me, your steps that you're going to be taking to starting to

build these new relationships that will ultimately end up in new friendships what are you doing at the moment to get there because that is one area that I know a lot of agents battle is to build that actual network so give us the steps that you're following at the moment yes sir it's a big one because um I I hate called calling and stuff like that but right now it is back to basics and I have to do a lot of that as well but luckily because I'm quite a social person um we've done two golf days already in the area. So I've jumped onto the local Facebook pages and social media. And there's a whole lot of tourism.

There's a tourism page. And then do all of the events that's happening. So I've jumped in on that. And I'm looking, where can I be part of this? And how can I get in on this? And so we've got a gazebo. We did branding the gazebo and all sorts of flags and things before we left.

And we've got all of that ready. So we've done two golf days already, where we were able to actually meet the mayor of our town and we've, I've done some drops, little promotional drops in the area, but we literally do try and see whatever is available in our immediate local community that we can get involved in this, cleanups, beach cleanups and all those kind of events that are happening. Fortunately for me, I'm a Harley Davidson rider, so I've got involved with the local motorcycle group here. So we're busy with an event, a ladies event coming up 9 May for that, well. And just by doing that, also on the social media pages, obviously my name is going out there because I'm sharing these other fun stuff that we're doing. It's not just, hey, I'm a real estate agent. Hey, I'm here to sell your property. I'm getting my name out there so people know, ooh, this girl's involved in the area. Oh, she's, oh, but by the way, she also sells property. So those are the kind of events that, that we're looking at doing and that we have been doing in the last month since we've got you. And I absolutely love that because going into a brand new,

area. You don't want to be remaining the, call it the, we call it the Superman syndrome. Clark Kent, you dressed up, nobody knows who you are. You want to be out there. You want everybody to know what you're doing. It's building that awareness through what you mentioned, Holly Davidson Club, getting that ladies club together. So everybody is enjoying that. The events, getting become social, whether it's going and doing golf events. So they get more exposure on that. Getting involved with the community, which is so important, the more you get involved with the community, the more the community responds back to yourself. And using social media, not to tell the story that you're a real estate agent, but to tell the story of what you're actually doing for the

community, what you're doing at these particular events, what you're doing for the clubs. It's that give back. It's that emotional connection that you're actually building. Now, when we take through this particular journey, you've now done all these social events, You're now starting to fast forward six months, 12 months into the future where you've now started to build these relationships. In the beginning, you mentioned with your previous company or your previous business that you currently have, builders and developers, these are third party individuals that can actually give you a lot of referral business because they've got their own clientele. I want to talk about the builders, the developers, etc. how did you get involved with building a connection with them because that is a lucrative source of leads that can come through to you so how did you get into that space with builders

and developers in the beginning so I think in the beginning it was just you know the nature of my business and I have done you know a lot of builds and building homes and working with very closely with a builder to do the actual interior finishes of a home so I've got a very big interest and a passion for doing those kind of project. So for me, that was building that connection and taking the headache off the boulder. He just wants to build the walls and get on with his life. He's not interested in the pretty stuff that comes with it. We are love doing that.

And again, for me, so that's where I added value in that guy's life. So together, we could achieve a lot more. And it took a headache out of him. And then also future business that came along, I would find a home, for instance, that a client just bought or just acquired and then it needs to be renovated. So I would then come back to the building and say, hey, I've got this project for you. So there's give and take. So, you know, I would refer business to him.

He would refer business to me and together we make it work. And I've also got a very, very strict policy. And I've been in my 18 years of being in an interior design space. You know, I have a little black book of people that I use. and some of those people I'm still using because they haven't let me down. So if I, and they know, if I need to refer their services as a plumber, as an electrician, as a maintenance guy,

as a roof repair guy, whatever it is, you cannot let me down because it's going to reflect badly on me and on my business. So we work hand in hand and I think they've also appreciated the referral business coming back because it works both ways. Absolutely. not just one way stream. They're giving you referrals. You're just accepting it and enjoying the rewards that come from it. You're actually giving business back to them. And that is a great

way of actually starting to build these particular relationships. So with any professional services, whether it's electricians, plumbers, landscapers, developers, builders, you name it, it is a two-way street of actually building those relationships, getting that trust, and actually giving referrals back to them to get it back to you. yourself. Sorry, if I can just add one more in that list of people, specifically in the real estate in business, don't forget your lawyer friends because your lawyer friends are a very important source of networking.

My one very good friend is an attorney, so they do conveyance thing, but they also do later estates. So there's a lot of referrals coming out of the estates that they pick up. You know, the houses need to be sold. So those referrals come straight through to you. So don't forget those lawyer friends as well. You know, other divorce attorneys, you've got friends who are divorce attorneys, people get divorced. The houses need to be sold.

So don't forget those kind of relationships as well. Absolutely. All professional services. So we can extend it even to bond originators, anybody that's related in your industry that gives you that particular support. Now, Kalita, I want to move over to you've now built a database of three. friends. Because ultimately, that is where we've led until. You've met somebody new. You've built a relationship with them. And they've become a friend. Now, what do you do to maintain that particular relationship with them so that you're always top of mind as Colette? Not just as the

real estate agent, but as Colette. Because once people get that top of mind of you, there's always the connection of knowing what you do. So give us an overview of what do you do on an ongoing basis. whether it's a weekly, monthly, annual basis. How do you maintain the relationships with these friends? I think for me, it just comes naturally because of my personality. And I'm just an outgoing person. So I love to see my friends and talk to them often. So I do make regular phone calls.

I do stay in touch with, I've got a couple of groups, you know, WhatsApp chats, groups that we got in every now and then you pop a little message. But I think it is, but it's also very important for me to. say hi and to phone and do those care calls and check in with somebody or you see on Facebook somebody's maybe not in such a good space make a phone call and reach out to them every now and then you know a memory pops up on it on your on your phone or in your my iPhone's quite clear sometimes got those memories from three years or five years or whatever case is and a photo comes up and then just send that photo send a message so I think

it's just about staying in contact whether you you know some some people are very busy Some people don't like to talk on the phone too much. So then you just pop a WhatsApp. But I think just staying in contact ultimately with those people. And that's, yeah, the most important thing, I think, is just staying in contact and important, important special days. Birthdays for me are huge. I love spending. I love celebrating birthdays.

So those are huge and I make people feel special on birthdays because it's important. So this is something that is so, so important. You know, so too often brand new agents coming into the industry, I've got to fall into that, that I call it a trap where they only cold call. And that cold calling can become quite cold for yourself. But when you're starting to have these conversations with friends, do you ever get a scenario where a friend says, hey, Colette, I never want to speak to you again for whatever particular reason?

Have you ever had that as a response from a friend? And I'm calling those friends for the time being. could be a business, a developer, et cetera. Have you ever had someone that she's giving you that cold shoulder? Yes, you do get that. And, you know, sometimes I think, don't take it that personally. And I used to do that when I first started in this business, because I don't like to go and ask somebody for something.

I'm really, that's hard for me. So I used to have that all. But, you know, then you change your story. Don't be so directed in their face. Oh, I'm selling real estate. So make it about them. How's your life? What's happening in your life?

I saw on Facebook, this is happening. Your granny died, whatever. But yes, you're going to have maybe at some stage, somebody will say, to listen, hey, I don't want any business if you. I'm really not, you know, I don't mix friendships in business. And then you'd be like, hey, you know what? I completely get it. It's okay.

But you know what? When the day comes in your change your mind, please let me be that person and leave it. Let it go. You know what? For one person that says no, the next thing people may say yes. The next, you know, so I think. just put that aside and move on to the next person. Absolutely.

One of the key things that I do with clients, especially the real estate clients, is when they have had a negative experience and I'll put into that category of friends, they tend to delete from their actual phone. But what I'm hearing from you is be accepting of their particular response. They don't want to do business with you. That's perfectly okay. But continue that friendship. because one thing that we have come to realize is over time, those friendships we do become deeper, they become stronger, and there will be such a time that someone will say, hey, by the way, I know I said I don't want to do business with you, but circumstances have changed.

And I know exactly what you do in your particular business. I love the way you operate your professionalism. Can you give me some advice? And that's typically where it all opens out. So as far as friendships that close the door on you, what I'm really here is. hearing is don't let it close, just make it a window, still have those views, still have those open communications that actually go through. I want to actually close off with leveraging your clients, your actual friendship clients into repeat and referral business. Now this is taking it

to people that have shown the interest in, hey, collect, you know what, in the next six to eight months, we're looking at relocating, et cetera. How do you elevate that level of communication with them so that you still remain top of mind. So when it does come to that six to eight month period, you're the only person they call. What type of communications do you have with those people? They're really ready to give you other repeat business or referral business. I think it's really about staying organized and in your planning.

So if you're having a conversation and you hear that there's a future possibility, then I think it is very important that you make. note of that and diarize that. If that is a friend or somebody that's close to you, you're already going to be in contact of that person often anyway. But make a specific note in your diary somewhere to say, hey, Joe is going to sell his house by Christmas. And so that you can then maybe around November, you can have that conversation.

Hey, by the way, Joe, you said to me that you were, are things still the same? Is finance is still a problem? Or you're still going to sell it, you know, where we are. I think then you can start having that conversation. But I think the most important thing is, and we often forget, because now you, in a social rattle, whatever, you're in a relax. It's not a formal meeting as such because you're dealing of someone you know and it's a friend. But I think just make that note and dot it down. So I think it is about being organized and being scheduling those future appointments that you need to make and that you need to follow up on.

And, Leitz, I want to thank you for your time in going through this particular process because what is so impressive about this is, this actually becomes an easy way of doing business. And I know I use easy very loosely because when you just follow the simple process and it starts by, if you're in a new area, build the awareness, get involved with the community, share your experiences and what you're actually doing with that community, out on social media, out in any form of publication. So people learn more about what you're doing, not to highlight that, hey, look at me, I'm a real estate agent and this is what I'm doing.

it's really the give back. It's that emotional give back coming into the community. When you are building those relationships, they will start leading to friendships. Now, this could even be on a professional basis, whether it's with builders, whether it's with the developers, landscapers, attorneys, having those deep relationships where you actually take it to friendships, you know, sharing the story of starting with your gynaecologist and his wife is now your best friend. That's taking it to that point where you're building those friendships. Then having those ongoing communications is so, so important.

They are warm conversations. What you'll find is, yes, there will be certain clients for certain friends that will say, hey, I'm not ready to buy or sell. Don't force anything on me. That's quite okay. It does not mean that you have to end a friendship. You can carry on that friendship, build those relationships, wish them the birthdays, the anniversaries, etc.

It's by going through that process that the connections and bonds start. to become stronger and stronger. They will start to refer who you are as an individual to other people. And once it gets to that particular point where, hey, we're highlighting, we are nearly ready. We're thinking about it. Well, then we start elevating ourselves to be more purposeful. We start getting organized with the conversations that we're having with those particular friends. And ultimately, this all starts to lead into those repeat and those referral businesses. that you ultimately want. Colette, I want to thank you for this little journey that we've gone through.

Is there anything that you want to close off before we move on to some Q&A? No, I think just, you know, it's kind of exactly what you're saying. I mean, for me, in the beginning of this journey in real estate was a lot of, I needed to learn how to do this business and what it was all about. But then I realized that my network of people that I know are so amazing that I really don't to do the call calling thing because the referrals and that will come and it was just tapping into those connections and relationships that I already have and once that started spinning for me and the referrals started coming and the businesses started coming I don't have to go look for it anymore then it became

easy to do the business and then it was like oh wow I love this it's not that hard but it's just stay authentic in who you are as a person and and you know you already everybody that's got you've got yourself and how many people are in your phone. Those are people that you know. Just chat to them, stay in touch with them and contact them. Brilliant. Colette, thank you again for your time. So always remember, you're an entrepreneur in the real estate space. And as an entrepreneur, well, you need those friends. Why? Because it's through those communications with those friends that as a human, it actually starts to lift us up. So Lead Masterminds is all about talking about how you can elevate your particular business through learning through others.

So do look out for future sessions of these elite masterminds where we will help you to elevate your business as an entrepreneur in the real estate space.